Machu Picchu, Peru

Macchu Picchu, Peru

by Alfio Cerami Rev: 30/04/2018

Image acquired with Landsat 8 on July 24, 2017

Satellite Imagery by DigitalGlobe 2018.

Machu Picchu, situated in the Urubamba region (Machupicchu district) in Peru, is an old urban, agricultural and religious Inca citadel above the Sacred Valley. It was built for the Emperor Pachacuti(1438–1472) (see Landsat 8 image above).

Approximately, 750 Incas lived here. The citadel was abandoned in 1572, probably because of a small pox epidemics brought by the Spanish conquistadores.

Machu Picchu was an important centre for agriculture and trade, as the presence of farming terraces and roads show (see Digital Globe Map below).

The Intihuatana ritual stone, placed on the top of the Intihuatana hill, was believed to be “The Hitching Post of the [God] Sun”. It was used to chop heads. It was also an astronomic clock. For the Machu Picchuians, skulls rolling down rocky staircases were a common image.

The Machu Picchuians had an efficient water-distribution system that was used for farming.

Machu Picchu has been portrayed in various movies, among which the most notable Madonna che Silenzio c’e’ Stasera (1982) with Francesco Nuti.